Tuesday, October 1, 2019

People's Catholic Seminary offers courses in contemporary theology and programs for spiritual enrichment. The courses below with hot links are available to the public now. To register for these courses or programs, click on the hot link to purchase the course. For more information visit our website at https://pcseminary.org or send an inquiry to peoplescatholicseminary@gmail.com

Courses- Fee for all courses: $100. Financial assistance is available.

PCS 101. Contemporary Theology for the People of GodThis course introduces pastoral leaders in inclusive communities to an accessible contemporary theology that presents a tapestry of the Divine Presence Who lovingly invites us into the fullness of life for all creation, explores the diverse and fuller naming of the Divine that encompasses the full reality of women and men of all races and classes, and illuminates a rich variety of theological approaches to compassionate living in our work for peace, justice and ecological wholeness.

PCS 201. The Challenge of Jesus for the 21st Century ChristianThis course introduces the deep wisdom of recent biblical scholarship on the life and teachings of Jesus and the challenges it presents to believers today, and reimagines the Christian call to live as co-creators and empowered individuals within an egalitarian church community. PCS 202. Rediscovering Jesus in a Companionship of EmpowermentThis course introduces the deep wisdom of Diarmuid O'Murchu's book, Christianity's Dangerous Memory: A rediscovery of the Revolutionary Jesus. This course presents the Jesus story in a social justice context.

PCS 301. Spiritual Encounters with Women MysticsThis course explores the Christian’s call to be a visible mystic and agent of prophetic witness in the church and world community through a ministry rooted in contemplation and action.

PCS 303. Feminist Introduction to the Bible - Christian ScripturesThis course presents a contemporary, biblical understanding of the women in the life and ministry of Jesus and the early church.

PCS 304. Celtic Holy Women: Our Wisdom GuidesThis course presents Celtic holy women as wisdom guides, prophets, spiritual leaders and anam charas. It also introduces sacred wells and monastic sites in Ireland and Wales associated with the sacred feminine. The goal is to celebrate the contributions of Celtic spirituality and to make the connections with contemporary life today. This material can be utilized as an independent or cohort study.

PCS 306. Visionary Women Leaders in ChristianityThis course explores “Women Christianity” from a historical perspective, following the story from biblical times to the present day. Women are the “elephant in the Roman Catholic Church.” They have been perpetually silenced, ignored and discounted. If the Church is to survive, it is evident that it must be a more inclusive Church where the gifts of women and men are equally recognized, and where the present understanding of ordination is transformed from the bottom up.

PCS 307. Hildegard of Bingen and the Greening of the SoulThis course will begin with an engaging introduction to Hildegard’s life followed by an overview of her works and their significance for us today. It will conclude by weaving it all together through the lens of Hildegard’s understanding of the theological concepts of Viriditas (greening power) and the Living Light (primordial energy force). The contemporary contributions of this medieval woman and Doctor of the Church, St. Hildegard of Bingen, have the potential for inspiring a new model of empowered companionship for ministry today through creativity, mysticism, and the greening of the soul.PCS 308 Mary of Magdala and the Seven Powers of Spiritual Transformation

The purpose of this course is to provide a reflection and discussion on the seven powers presented in the Gospel of Mary, the only gospel that was written in the name of a woman. The seven powers are sources of spiritual growth and ministerial transformation. This Gospel reveals a radical love that sits at the heart of the Christian story. Her teaching is that we are not sinful; we are not to feel ashamed or unworthy for being human. In fact, our purpose is to be fully human, to be a "true human being.”

401. Sacraments: Yesterday, Today and TomorrowThis course presents sacramental development throughout history, exposes how church fathers and scholastic theologians misinterpreted ancient texts to prove Catholic doctrine, introduces critical analysis of sacramental theologies that no longer meet the needs of contemporary Catholics and reimagines sacramental experiences and rituals in a diversified global church.

PCS 402. Eucharist: Embracing an Open Table Through reflections and projects, students will articulate a contemporary understanding of Eucharist as a sacred meal around a friendship table as they construct Eucharistic celebrations for their Christian communities.

PCS 403. Baptism and Confirmation This course explores the development of the sacraments of baptism and confirmation, articulates the commitment to Gospel living by integrating theological reflection, spirituality and ministerial experience, and supports pastoral leaders in developing contemporary baptism and confirmation rituals for their Christian Communities that reflect the heart of the call to live the Gospel as mystics, prophets and sacramental celebrators of life.

PCS 404. Reshaping the Priesthood as a Discipleship of Equals This course examines the role of the international Roman Catholic Women Priests’ Movement in reshaping and redefining priestly and pastoral ministry as a discipleship of equals in the 21st century.

PCS 405. Marriage, Family, and Sexuality Using the framework of contemporary theology, this course is focused on developing an inclusive, egalitarian understanding of the sacrament of marriage and family life. It explores the topic of Christian sexual ethics within this same framework. The course integrates theological reflection and ministerial experience into its discussions.

PCS 406. Anointing and HealingThis course explores the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick as an encounter with divine healing love that energizes and transforms body, mind, and spirit, reflects on meditation as a tool in self-healing and vitality, and creates create contemporary celebrations of Anointing that respond to diverse pastoral needs.

PCS 407. Compassion and Reconciliation – The Empowering Grace of VulnerabilityThis course presents the sacrament of reconciliation as an encounter with Divine healing and transforming love, reflects on role of priest and community, and creates a contemporary celebration of reconciliation that responds to diverse pastoral needs.PCS 501. Introduction to the Bible - Hebrew ScripturesThis course presents an introduction to the Old Testament / Hebrew Scriptures with a focus on a biblical understanding of the text as it relates to contemporary theology and ministry for women and men in the 21st century.

PCS 502. Parables

This course explores the parables of Jesus as puzzling sayings and stories with world-transforming potential. This course offers an understanding of how parables work and a fresh variety of possible meanings not only for Jesus ' original audience and for the early Christians for whom Matthew, Mark, and Luke wrote but also for contemporary Christians as well.

PCS 503. Tapestry of Light: Exploring the Relationship between Gnosticism and the BiblePCS 504. The Challenge of PaulIn order for us to fully understand the Paul of history, Dr. Crossan insists that we take him out of 16th-century Reformation theology and put him back into his own historical matrix, the first century during the Roman empire. In this historical context, Dr. Crossing presents Paul challenging Roman imperialism out of Messianic Christian Judaism.

The purpose of this course is to provide new perspectives on the legacy of Jesus in the earliest Christ communities that include a fresh mixture of the traditional New Testament texts alongside a treasure chest of ten new books that were lost for centuries and now have been discovered and translated: the Gospel of Mary, the Gospel of Thomas, The Gospel of Truth, the Prayer of the Apostle, the Acts of Paul and Thecla, the Prayer of Thanksgiving, the Odes of Solomon, the Letter of Peter to Philip, the Secret Revelation of John, and The Thunder: Perfect Mind. A New, New Testament, which has been assembled by nineteen spiritual leaders and edited by prominent scholar Hal Taussig, makes contemporary scholarship readily available, readable and relevant to the public. It reveals a fuller portrait of the life, teachings, and ministry of Jesus that will broaden intellectual understanding and spiritual growth.

601. Homiletics and Preaching

This course provides a framework to create inspiring homilies, to implement effective delivery, and to incorporate contemporary scholarship of scripture through various approaches to sermon development.

PCS 602. Social Justice and EthicsThis course explores issues and theologies of social justice and ethics that build a just society; reflects on the scriptural foundations of Catholic social teaching, and examines the social and moral teachings of the Roman Catholic Church in light of concrete issues such as human rights, refugees, peace-building, war, violence, discrimination, environmental degradation, economic exploitation, reproductive rights, racism, sexism, and homophobia.

PCS 603. Future Church: Evolving, Empowering and EgalitarianThe course proposes a visionary framework for understanding the evolution of religions and specifically the transitions that continue to evolve in Christianity. Paul Smith, author of Integral Christianity introduces the integral approach that Jesus advocated in his time and that traditional Christianity has been unable to see. This course invites participants to analyze this framework and apply it to the present evolving changes occurring in Christianity, specifically the Roman Catholic Church.Spirituality Programs

PCS 701. Spirituality and the ArtsThis course provides a path to creative expression of the Divine Presence and oneness of all people and creation. Through readings, videos, art-making, students will express their mystical, prophetic, sacramental vision of ministry for the 21st century.

PCS 702. Spiritual Direction: Spiritual Companions on a JourneyThis course provides an introduction to the ancient practice of spiritual companionship or spiritual friendship in the Christian tradition. It gives helpful input about what to look for in searching for a spiritual director, how to prepare to be one, and how to help those who are called to this distinctive ministry.

Spiritual Spa 101: Healing Power of PrayerThis program features ten healing prayer approaches, grounded in scripture and the Christian tradition that will help you tap into the presence of the Divine within you and to access your spiritual energy for healing and transformation.